by Fresh and Green Team
All beings are connected and helping one can impact millions!
-Michael Mike-E Ellison
Fresh and Green Academy is proof that it is simple to make a difference. Since the school opened in 2000, hundreds of children have been saved from having to live in the streets. The school is operated and the children are fed and educated entirely by the generosity of others.
Your end of the year donation will continue supporting the beautiful and energetic children at Fresh and Green Academy in Ethiopia.
One of our favorite compliments from our donors and supporters is that our children look happy! Yes, indeed they are. The reason for this is because of years of care that includes nutrition, education, and unconditional support that these children would not have if it were not for donors such as yourself.
by Fresh and Green Team
Now, thanks to your generous donations, the security wall is back up keeping the school safe and giving the children a place to play.
Thanks to your donations, the new security wall is complete.
We still need your help to rebuild the block of classrooms that was partially destroyed. The building needs to be completely torn down, moved and rebuilt in brick. This project will cost close to $10,000.
To make things even more challenging….. The land that the school sits on is going up for sale in a few months. Fortunately, we have been given the opportunity of first refusal and a discounted price in order to keep Fresh and Green Academy operating, but we can’t do it without you.
The immediate financial needs are as follows in USD:
$106,000. for the purchase of the 732 sq meters of land including the main school building, which houses the principal and director’s offices, library, science lab, and classrooms for 5th through 8th grade. The kitchen, Mothers Coop area, showers and bathrooms, and director’s home are also included in the price.
$10,000. for the relocation and the rebuilding of the first through fourth grade classrooms. Government regulation requires the building to be reconstructed in brick which raises the construction price significantly.
$2,500. to purchase new desks.
To see the school and it’s needs check out our video.
To donate specifically to theses projects you can use the button below. As always, your donations are tax deductible.
Thank you for making a difference.
by Fresh and Green Team
Help the mothers of Fresh and Green by buying an item made at the school!
Shop our online store here!
The students’ mothers come to Fresh and Green Academy at least once per week to work in the Mothers Cooperative. You’ll find them working in the newly created looming area weaving colorful scarfs. They can weave four scarfs in a day, knowing every item sold helps them provide food for their families.
You might imagine the moms to be in their late thirties with their solemn, lined faces talking softly among themselves. Looks can be deceiving: most are in their twenties and early 30s, which is middle-aged in Ethiopia. Life expectancy is only 45.Sit and talk with them and you’ll learn some of their stories: most grew up in small villages. In the 1980s, when most of them were children, it was a time of
You might imagine the moms to be in their late thirties with their solemn, lined faces talking softly among themselves. Looks can be deceiving: most are in their twenties and early 30s, which is middle-aged in Ethiopia. Life expectancy is only 45.Sit and talk with them and you’ll learn some of their stories: most grew up in small villages. In the 1980s, when most of them were children, it was a time of
Sit and talk with them and you’ll learn some of their stories: most grew up in small villages. In the 1980s, when most of them were children, it was a time of great famine in Ethiopia. And so they moved to Addis Ababa as soon as they got into their teens, thinking it would be the land of opportunity. But there was no work, or food to be found. Some of them turned to prostitution as the only way of staying alive. Most got pregnant, and most got HIV.
That is one common thread that runs through their lives. But the other commonality is this: Through Fresh and Green they have been given back their dignity: through the weaving and craft sales, they are able to afford food for themselves and their children. Most importantly, the meals they are now able to afford help them qualify for the life-saving anti-retroviral medicine that has turned AIDS from a fatal to a manageable disease.
Muday has held classes in health and hygiene and they have learned how to keep themselves and their families healthy and strong. They have formed a sisterhood of trust and friendship in a city where life can be very unforgiving; in short, they are thriving.
Through Muday’s vision, the entire neighborhood of Kotebe has been transformed. With your help, not just the students, but their mothers have been given this one invaluable thing called hope.
by Fresh and Green Team
One of the main functions of Fresh and Green is to nourish the children. The children receive three meals a day everyday they are at the school, and for most of them, this is the only time they eat. Because of this fact, what started as a preschool and kindergarten school, now has classes through 5th grade!
New Preschool and Kindergarten Building
We needed to build a new structure per government regulations and the result is a new beautiful building and an upgrade of the original building. Fortunately, we were able to rent a plot of land next to the school. The new building has 6 rooms including a bathroom, teachers room, and nap room.
The three classrooms are for the preschool and kindergarten 1 and 2 classes. The main building now has a science lab and the 5th grade classroom.
Science Lab in the Original Building
The majority of funding for this project came from the money raised at “The Fourth Annual Poker/Casino Fundraiser”
Thank you for making this all possible and continuing to support Friends of Fresh and Green Academy.
by Fresh and Green Team
Friends of Fresh and Green Academy hosted its fourth annual Casino Night on September 10, 2012, at Connolly’s in Midtown Manhattan. Over $10,000 was raised which will pay for the new addition of classrooms to enable us to add fifth grade. Many guests exclaimed that they had a great time and will be back next year!
Fresh and Green Academy, in Addis Ababa, has eight students entering fifth grade for which three additional classrooms are needed. These classrooms include a science lab, library, and general classroom. In Ethiopia, fifth through eighth grade is considered middle school. These newly constructed classrooms will be able to accommodate students for the next four years.
Thanks to money raised at this event and continued donor support, Fresh and Green Academy will also be able to admit ten new preschool children. These children now have hope for a future, which includes a well-rounded education and three nutritious meals daily.
The evening’s highlights included a poker & blackjack tournament, and new to this year, roulette tournament. Guests played for prizes while enjoying a full open bar and appetizers. Tickets to see Madonna in concert were among prizes in the roulette tournament. Along with the tournament, a raffle enticed guests to donate more money to the school with a chance to win prizes such as a Proenza-Schouler handbag, Stella & Dot jewelry and more.
Every guest who attended received a goodie bag that was filled with samples, including Scentsy and Lancome products, air plants from Lulindi, promotional coupons, and Friends of Fresh and Green playing cards.
Robert Essel from Robert Essel Photography was taking photos all night, which can be seen here.
Friends of Fresh and Green Academy would like to thank all attendees, volunteers, donors, and businesses that donated goods and services to make this year’s Casino Night a huge success for such a crucial cause.
Please watch for information on holiday fairs and other fundraising campaigns to ensure that Fresh and Green Academy and its 125 brilliant children continue to thrive!
